Friday, April 14, 2017

Ohio Man Jumps to His Death in Courthouse Before Trial for Raping Girl, 10, and Killing Her and Grandparents privateofficer.com

Youngstown
OH April 14 2017 An Ohio man accused of raping a
10-year-old girl and setting a fire that killed her and her grandparents jumped
to his death from a fourth-floor courthouse balcony on Monday before he could
face trial, reports say.

Robert Seman Jr., 48, was walking through the
Mahoning County Courthouse with police in Youngstown after a pre-trial hearing
when he quickly ran from the officers and jumped over a banister at around 9:30
a.m., WKBN reports.

“I saw a deputy at the railing, and I saw this white
object falling to the ground,” a reporter at the scene, Joe Gorman, told WKBN.
“I knew what it was, and I just screamed.”

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Footage obtained by WLS-TV showed Seman Jr. wearing
tan pants and a white shirt as he calmly walked alongside officers. Soon, he is
shown running from the police and climbing over the banister.

Seman Jr. died just one day before jury selection
was set to begin on his triple murder trial, the Associated Press reports. He
was accused of raping 10-year-old Corinne Gump then setting the March 2015 fire
that killed Gump and her grandparents, William, 63, and Judith Smith, 61, at
their home.

The blaze occurred the day Seman Jr. was set the day
the man’s rape trial was set to begin in Youngstown, the AP reports.
Prosecutors said that burns were found on the man’s body at the time of his
arrest.

Many were surprised at Seman Jr.’s act on Monday,
with Sheriff Jerry Green saying that the man looked to be in “pretty good
spirits.”

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“He was talking about the future of his trial, and
he just decided to jump.”

Lisa Cappitti, Gump’s stepmother, told the
Youngstown Vindicator that the family doesn’t “know how to feel” as a result of
Seman Jr.’s death.